Homes for Cornwall put on a show, yes very much like a Hollywood production. Gathering influential friends and performers together for something that needed to be explored. A way out of the mess that we are in and to ask people to engage and put forward ideas and give help either physically or monetarily.
Gail Muller, compare for the evening, is a writer, and adventurer of great strength and courage. The evening started off with a lovely feeling of abandonment, abandoning the idea of everything being totally prepared and perfect. Which is very much how one could describe Cornwall. Never perfect, beautiful in her natural state. Sadly though Cornwall is losing its beauty to abuse and maltreatment of her land, sea and air, and her people. Gail guided us through some amazing acts and speakers. Emma Stratton of Scarlet and Bedruthan Steps Hotels talked of a University of Falmouth project where Architects are working with them on ideas to help keep communities together with something that they simply call “ The Acre Project.” All that is needed is one acre within a community (village or town) that can be put aside to build Social Homes, Terraced with gardens or Stilted houses with allotments and Micro homes with wildlife meadows and allotments. Community laundry areas and hall. There were apparently 5 different ideas on the table, three of which we saw on the big screen. The idea is to make these homes as ecologically self-sufficient and friendly to the environment at the same time. Also to make sure that it stays within the hands of the local community and is not sold on. Allister Young - CEO Coast Line wants to create a “Time Bank” which would engage the skills of the local community in providing a place to talk about housing. I gather this involves people volunteering their time, as he said “Cornwall is one of the best known places for volunteers” So they will be hoping to meet up with people who have the following skills, Planners, Surveyors, Engineers and Lawyers. Questions with Kate Kennally - This was extraordinary, and I cannot go into it fully as the idea behind the evening was not to place blame or marr the work put into producing this event with anger or shaming people for past misdemeanours or bad management. But, her opening remarks about being proud of the Tory Council’s track record being impressive did leave me a little cold. She said Cornwall had produced 3,841 homes in a year when the average trend is 2,800. But obviously we know that this is not talking about social housing. She stated that Cornwall Council was using the pension fund to secure homes. Apparently, Cornwall Council has £690 million in hand for development. Where are the social houses, and rentable homes then? Saying that there will be an infrastructure report and that developers were making contributions towards the infrastructure. So far the infrastructure has proved broken, and that was before the majority of the developments were built. Claiming that the catastrophic tipping point regarding over development of housing is not of concern as currently development is only marginally smaller than land coverage by roads! What about agriculture, areas of outstanding natural beauty and scientific interest, ancient monuments and conservation/heritage areas? What will be left for food production? She said that we need to have the right housing, smaller, being in a rural area. I will leave that one in your court to think about it. When asked what Kate would want to see, she said a 5 years settlement plan with regards to funding to help work together for housing in Cornwall. Will Keating and Daniel Woodfield brought home the severity of poverty of housing and jobs with his song written after his foster son took his own life. The Story Republic brilliantly show cased some of Annamaria Murphy’s work. Sapphire Sumpter Dance Group used modern interpretation of some very well known traditional dance. Catrina Davies of Shed fame sang about being homesick. Rhys Wyn Jones - still of no fixed abode (at the time of writing) played some amazing music on the grand piano and he is looking forward to his solo concert at Truro Cathedral over Christmas (more info on that here). Holly Turton sang Free falling and Seamus Carey sang a rather appropriate song, rather well in Cornish. 16 year old Finley Bray, a student at Truro College sang and played his guitar. Last but not least. Fisherman’s Friends, what can you say, except that they were their usual amazing selves! It was an incredible night and I am really glad that it was put on. Something that many of us have often wished we could have done, and have planned in our heads, but we don’t have the same well connected friends or that kind of money to do so. In the spirit of a grass roots fledgling movement, hope for creating homes for those who have lost so much, is growing. Now that we know there are people out there who actually care, and are not just looking at this as an investment and portfolio building exercise, it feels real and possible. However, until we can change planning policies, and have planning control brought into Cornwall’s hands, we will remain beholden to Westminster’s continual destruction of our small narrow peninsular homeland. We have to stop the cheap development of properties that are overpriced and not intended for the local population. Concentrate on social housing to keep our families together, and keep community continuity. We will be struggling to stop this feeding frenzy by large corporate property developers who chose not to fulfil their quota of social housing. Good Luck. But how will you keep the business development groups out of it and lobbying for more houses? Money is what has driven us to this amount of destruction, and none of it is staying in Cornwall. Our Council has had to sell off so much of our assets in order to keep projects like the space port going, also other ideas that have wasted our money. What we want is for ALL development to stop. Yes all, until there is enough social housing for all the people of Cornwall who have been waiting for years on lists that supersede property available. Stop selling off social housing. Consider the idea that offering a discount on purchasing a first home, based on the amount of years having rented social/Housing Association property, would be better, and thus keep the homes free for others in need. Our families are split and many of our young people have left for good, because there is nothing here for them, work or home wise. However, there are plenty of houses for those who can afford them from elsewhere. FCPNM - being ignored and not being complied with. Cornwall is the home of a National Minority who are not having their say as to what they want and need. They are being traumatised by what they see happening to their homeland, and feel helpless in trying to protect it. I still wish this project success.
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